December 14, 2023

Click here for a roundup of local and world news

Newsroom, 14.12.2023, 13:55

BUDGET Romania’s draft 2024 budget is to be endorsed by the
Cabinet in a meeting today. The document will subsequently be submitted for
review in Parliament. The budget is based on a 3.4% economic growth rate, a
budget deficit target of 5% of GDP and an estimated annual inflation rate of 6% of GDP. The
draft law also includes the already announced salary and pension increases, as
well as most of the measures in the Government’s new legislative package. The
ministries that will receive more money than in 2023 are the education,
development, environment and family ministries, while lower appropriations
would be received by the energy ministry and the ministry for investments and
EU projects.

SUMMIT The president of
Romania, Klaus Iohannis, takes part on Thursday and Friday in the European
Council meeting in Brussels, where important and complex topics will be
approached, according to the Romanian Presidency. These include the EU
enlargement, a revision of the 2021-2027 Multi-Annual Financial Framework,
support for Russia-invaded Ukraine, the situation in the Middle East, security and
defence, migration and the Union’s future Strategic Agenda. As far as the
Multi-Annual Financial Framework for 2021-2027 is concerned, president Iohannis will plead
for an approach that promotes financial balance between the already existing
commitments and the new priorities on the EU agenda, and does not involve a cut
in the funding of the Common Agricultural Policy and the Cohesion Policy, the
Presidency says. As for the situation in the Middle East, Mr. Iohannis will
insist on the need for increased involvement of the EU in the region, in view of protecting
civilians, de-escalating the conflict and resuming the two-state peace process.

UKRAINE The reconstruction of Ukraine and Romania’s strategic role
in this process is the topic of an international conference held in the
Romanian mountain resort of Sinaia. Taking part are Romanian and foreign
officials, independent experts, business people, academia and diplomats. The
head of the Romanian government, Marcel Ciolacu, and the Ukrainian prime
minister Denys Shmyhal, sent a video message to the participants, highlighting
the Romanian-Ukrainian partnership and Romania’s support for Ukraine.

FUNDING On Friday, December 15, Romania will submit its 3rd
payment request under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan, the PM Marcel
Ciolacu said at a meeting of the inter-ministry coordination committee for this
programme. The funding under the Plan amounts to EUR 2.7 bln and covers 74
targets and benchmarks for the second half of the year 2022.

ISRAEL The
Romanian foreign ministry this morning announced the death of another person
with Romanian and Israeli citizenship taken hostage in Gaza by the Islamist
group Hamas. Tal Haimi was kidnapped on October 7, and his death had
already been announced by the Israeli Embassy in Romania. According to a
Facebook post by the Israeli diplomatic office, Tal Haimi’s wife had come to
Bucharest in late October to request Romania’s assistance in the efforts to get
the Hamas hostages freed. On December 2, the foreign ministry said the Israeli
authorities announced the death of a person with dual, Romanian and Israeli
citizenship, captive in Gaza. Two other people with Romanian and Israeli
citizenship are currently held hostage by Hamas, and Romania’s foreign ministry
reiterates the need for all hostages to be released. The Romanian Embassy in
Tel Aviv stays in touch with the Israeli authorities, the foreign ministry also
said.

ALERT Alert
messages were sent to the citizens in the counties of Galaţi and Tulcea, near Romania’s Ukrainian border, on Wednesday night. People
were warned against objects falling from the airspace, were urged not to panic
and take shelter if necessary. These were the first RO-ALERT messages sent to
the population in nearly 3 months, in the context of the war in Ukraine. This
year the defence ministry identified parts of 3 drones used by Russia in
strikes on Ukrainian Danube ports, which had fallen in Tulcea County. (AMP)